SpaceX Dragon Capsule's Re-Entry Triggers Sonic Boom Across Southern California
- On the night of Saturday, May 24, 2025, many residents across California's Central Coast and Southern California heard a loud sonic boom and saw a bright streak in the sky near 10:40 p.m. PT.
- The event occurred as SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft reentered Earth's atmosphere and prepared to splash down off the southern California coast near Oceanside around 10:44 p.m. PT.
- SpaceX shared on social media that the Dragon spacecraft would signal its return by producing a short sonic boom shortly before touchdown, following a 31-day stay docked at the International Space Station.
- People shared videos of the bright light and reported feeling the sonic boom’s shaking across much of Southern California, which occurred as Dragon dropped below supersonic speeds during reentry.
- The successful splashdown at approximately 10:45 p.m. marked the completion of Dragon’s 32nd mission to the ISS, highlighting its unique capability to return significant cargo and its role as the first private spacecraft carrying humans to the station.
38 Articles
38 Articles
Sonic Detectives Want to Help SpaceX Listen Up
Rocket launches are loud, and big rockets are louder. Launches used to be occasional spectacles, and not many people minded the noise. But the pace has quickened. SpaceX, the rocket company started by Elon Musk, now sends a Falcon 9 rocket to space at least once every few days from launchpads in Florida and California. Other companies, including Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, also have ambitions to send rockets to space at an accelerating pace. And th…
SpaceX spacecraft splashes down off coast of Oceanside
Did a loud boom startle you or your neighbors’ dogs on Saturday night in Southern California? If so, you’re not alone. SpaceX announced that its spacecraft, Dragon, reentered Earth’s atmosphere and “splashed down” off the southern coast near Oceanside around 10:44 p.m. “Dragon will also announce its arrival with a brief sonic boom prior to splashing down in the Pacific Ocean,” stated SpaceX in an X post. SpaceX’s website said the Dragon is “the …
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